Fire escape



April 24, 1951 T. P. DUNCAN, JR

FIRE ESCAPE Filed Sept. 29, 1947 IN V EN TOR.

T homas RDuncorngfrr BY W Patented Apr. 24, 1951 UNITED STATE PATENT OFFICE I FIRE ESCAPE Thomas P. Duncan, Jr., Newport News, Va.

Application September 29, 1947, Serial No. 776,719

Claims.

This invention relates to a fire escape and it is primarily an object of the invention to provide a device of this kind which is portable and which can be employed to advantage in escape from a hotel or other building not adequately equipped with the general type of permanent escapes.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of this kind including a part having a body harness together with a lowering cable element adapted to be secured to an effective support within the room from which escape is to be made.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a fire escape including a lowering cable comprising strands of requisite strength arranged side by side and connected by a wrapping of severable material together with means controlled by the escaping person for severing the said material for efiecting the unwinding of the cable and the descent of the person.

The invention consists in the details of construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts of my improved fire escape whereby certain advantages are attained, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order that my invention may be better understood, I will now proceed to describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawings,

bodiment of the invention, including portions of the associated body harness;

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken substantially on the line 22 of Figure 1 and Figure 3 is a sectional view taken substantially on the line 33 of Figure 1.

In the embodiment of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, F denotes a body frame rectangular in shape and of desired dimension and formed of material possessing desired strength and having high fire resistance. This frame comprising the two side members I, substantially square in cross section from end to end and which have their lower end portions connected by a cross member 2, rigid therewith. operatively engaged as at 3 with this member 2, are end portions of the leg straps 4 which have their outer portions formed to provide adjustable loops L through which are adapted to be inserted the lower limbs of the escaping person in a manner which is well known.

The upper end portions of the side members I have rigidly secured thereto the s aced parallel side members have interposed therebetween and flat members 5, and rigid between the central portions of these members 5, are the elongated blocks ii. The inner or opposed ends of the blocks 6 are spaced to provide a guide opening for the elongated straight stem or shank I, of a cutter controlling element E, to be hereinafter more particularly referred to.

operatively engaged as at 8 to the upper portion of one of the side members I, is an extremity of a waist encircling strap 9, for quick and adjustable connection with the buckle member I l operatively engaged, as at II, with the upper portion of the second side member I. With the strap 9 properly engaged around the. waist of a person and with the legs disposed through the loops L, the frame F will be effectually held to the person and in a manner to. allow escape from a window of a building or. other relatively high location.

The lower portions of the side members I, at the same sides thereof carry the bearings I2, forthe supporting shaft I4 carrying the drum I5. which has wound thereon the cable 0. This cable C comprising a number of strands I6, preferably of piano wire or the like of requisite strength, and which strands initially from end to end are held side by side by the tight wrapping therearound of the cords ll, of severable material.

At a desired distance above the drum I5, the

rigidly secured thereto a cross member I8, provided at substantially its longitudinal center with, a chamfered opening I9 through which the cable.

C passes from below and up into a tubular member 29 interposed between and rigid with the end of said shank or stem is continued by a' head I9 snugly engaged with the member l8 andwhich has its outer end portion formed into a cutting blade 20. The member I8 is provided with the opposed slots 2| through which extend the lugs 22, carried by the head l9 to hold said head against rotation in order to maintain the cutting blade 20 in effective position.

Initially, the outer end portions of the strands [6 are separated for a distance sufficient to allow said end portions to be threaded through the opposed openings 23 in the tubular member and out through and beyond the guide openings 24 between the cross members outwardly of the blocks 6. These strands l6 outwardly of the upper end of the frame F, have secured thereto, the

interlocking members which are adapted to be operatively engaged after the outer extremities of the strands [6 have been placed arounda bed post, or other effective holding support within the room from which th escape is to be made. When the attachment is with an article of furniture or other movable object, the same should be moved up against a wall or other desirable abutment.

7 When the apparatus is in use, the weight of the load to which the frame F is applied will cause the blade 20, which travels between the separated strands l6, to sever the encircling convolutions of the cords I! and thereby allow descent of the load at a speed determined. by the cutting action of the blade which is controlled by the escaping person imposing push: or pull upon the element E to increase or decrease the pressure of the blade 2!] on the cords and for which purpose the outer end portion of the stem or shank l ofthe element E is provided with a hand grip it.

The device or apparatus as hereinbefore described is one which does not have to be of any material size but can be made of size to be easily carried in the luggage so that a person traveling can be assured at all times of a medium of escape from hisroom, especially in the event of fire. From the foregoing description it is thought to be obvious that a fire escape constructed in accordance with my invention is particularly well adapted for use by reason of the convenience and facility with which it may be assembled and operated.

I claim:

1. A fire escape comprising an open frame adapted to' be attached to the body of a person, adrum carried thereby, a cable on the drum formed of a pair of separate strands disposed in side by side relation, a severa'ble wrapping for holding a" major length of said strands in such relation, means for attaching the free extremities of the strands to a support, and means movably mounted on said frame and operable by the person for severing the wrapping to allow descent. 2. A fire escape as set forth in claim 1, wherein the severing means comprises a shank having an end projecting from the upper end of said frame, a cutting blade on the other end of said shank, a member carried by said frame and supporting said shank for sliding movements, said wrapping terminating in line with said shank and adjacent to said cutting blade for its severance when the shank is manipulated from the said projecting end thereof, a hand grip on the projecting end of said shank, and means for preventing turning movements of said shank relative to said member.

3. A fire escape comprising a frame adapted to be attached to the body of a person, a drum mounted on the frame. a cable wound on the 4 drum, said cable comprising a pair of strands disposed in side by side relation, a severable wrapping for holding the strands in assembled relation, means carried by the free extremities of the strands for engagement with a holding support, and a cutting element carried by the frame and extending between the free end portions of the strands for use in severing the wrapping by the person to cause the cable to unwind, when the frame is under load to permit descent.

4. A fire escape comprising a rectangular frame adapted to be attached to the body of a person, a drum journalled transversely of and adjacent the lower end of said frame, a cross bar disposed transversely of and intermediate the upper and lower ends of said frame, a tubular member interposed between said cross bar and the upper end of said frame, said member being disposed in the plane of the longitudinal center of said frame and having its inner end aligned with a guide opening in said cross bar, a shank slidable in said member and having its upper end projecting from the upper end of said frame, a hand grip at the upper end of said shank, a cutting blade at the lower end of said shank, a cable formed of two separate strands wound upon said drum and having its free end trained through said guide opening and into said member below said cutting blade, a severable wrapping binding said. strands inside to side relation to a point within the inner end of said member and adjacent said cutting blade, the free ends of said strands extending obliquely outward of opposite sides of said member from the terminus of said wrapping and upwardly through openings in the upper end of said frame, and means at the extremities of the free ends of said strands for securing the same to a support.

5. A fire escape as set forth in claim 3, wherein the cutting element is mounted within a vertically disposed tubular member on said frame for movement lengthwise thereof and has oppositely disposed openings in its wall through which the free end portions of said strands pass, the cable extending into the lower end of the tubular member in, line with and adjacent to the cutting element.'

THOMAS P. DUNCAN, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 272,129 Edmonds Feb. 13, 1883 859,266 Ulery July 9, 1907 2,353,872 Brickman July 18, 1944 2,459,545 Schultz Jan. 18, 1949 

